Gardening
“Of all the wonderful things in the wonderful universe of God, nothing seems to me more surprising than the planting of a seed in the blank earth and the result thereof. Take that Poppy seed, for instance: it lies in your palm, the merest atom of matter, hardly visible, a speck, a pin's point in bulk, but within it is imprisoned a spirit of beauty ineffable, which will break its bonds and emerge from the dark ground and blossom in a splendor so dazzling as to baffle all powers of description.” - Celia Thaxter
The light stand for starting seeds is up and working. It is filled with newly planted seeds. I feel like a little kid who wants to dig up the seed to see if it has begun to sprout yet.“This very act of planting a seed in the earth has in it to me something beautiful. I always do it with a joy that is largely mixed with awe.”- Celia Thaxter
To be able to walk out my kitchen door and gather fresh herbs is a special joy. One of my hopes is that I will be able to keep fresh herbs and lettuces during the winter in this seed-starting stand, which actually seems to me a bit, like an indoor greenhouse.
I look at the labels on the flats: Five kinds of lettuce, three different basils, two kinds of parsley, sage, thyme, rosemary, borage, chives, summer savory, marjoram, oregano, foxglove, lavender, penstemon, larkspur, delphinium, rock cress, columbine, and butterfly flower. The vegetables need to wait for another ten days and all the seeds haven’t arrived yet.
The topmost shelf is filled with the flats I planted last week. Each little segment has tiny green leaves just beginning to unfold.
“When I see that first, minuscule, curled, pale green wisp of a sprout poking up between a couple of grains of vermiculite, I hear God speaking.” --- June Santon, "Miracle in a Dixie Cup," Greenprints #44
posted by Endment at 11:29 PM
17 Comments:
Delightful description of what you will be planting. It makes me want to grab my gardening tools and come dig with you. Here it has been so rainy, rainy, rainy that the ground is saturated. That wonderful feeling of getting hands into warm dirt has to be delayed for awhile. And by the way, your poetry is so terrific. Loved your piece about the "artist's date". Thanks for all your visits to the Secret Garden!
How exciting! I've always wanted a light stand for plants, not just for seeds, but for growing the Streptocarpus I adore. My windows are in bad locations or don't get enough light for me to grow them now. I used to grow Streptocarpus outdoors in San Diego, but the naughty Raccoons destroyed all my plants one night.
Keep us updated on the progress of your seedlings! :-)
What a great stand! Far more elaborate than I'd imagined. I can imagine your excitement and anticipation as seeds begin to sprout.
It does look like an indoor greenhouse! I love the way you've woven these wonderful quotations into your own story of your day yesterday. And thanks for your kind comments on my blog, I'm glad you stopped by.
ohhh, thaxter's new england gardens and her poetry! i must dig out a wonderful book i have featuring both.
i agree - isn't gardening grand?! i have already taken a walk in our front gardens this morning, even in the rain and my robe! i can't help myself, i am drawn there to smell the perfume and to see what new things greet me each day.
we have no seeds germinating despite my hubby wanting them badly. very short growing season here so we need to begin early or not at all with seeds. would love to get a tray set up like you have. thinking we could set it up in the garage if the lights would keep it warm enough - or does it have built in heat?
That is a beautiful light stand. It hold so much promise. It does look like an indoor greenhouse. Can you put it by a south facing window in winter, where it will get all the available light? You probably could grow some greens in winter then.
sigrid jardin
come dig. thanks for your comment
t. beth
I had some streptocarpus and african violets but couldn't keep up with our very limited winter light. I think something like this would be a perfect environment for growing streptocarpus.
pam in tucson
it is more elaborate than we expected but I think I am going to be happy with it. There are a lot of options available.
hobess
We will see if I can keep lettuce, basil and tomatoes growing next winter.
sky
we purchased the cover and a heater that goes under the flats.
I put the cover on and the inside temperature is staying just under eighty degrees f. I haven't even thought of using the heater (which looks like a heating pad) because the tent keeps things so warm. Perhaps we will use it in the winter.
As you can tell I enjoy Thaxter.
rexroth's daughter
we had some shelves up last winter and we were just barely able to keep some herbs alive... We are surrounded by woods and the evergreen trees limit our winter light
I have great hope and anticipation of winter crops. -we will see
I am linking you to my daily reads... I come here anyway. It looks so exciting and fun :-)
What a wonderful piece of equipment - and the post is inspiring. Enjoy the fruits of your labour.
How wonderful, seeds being started and green things to come! It will be some time before the danger of frost is over here in the north and I can spend time in the garden, but while I am waiting, I read your words and conjure up a mental garden full of herbs and roses. Lovely.............
Cate
I haven't visited your blog before but am glad I dropped by. It's a real treat - poetry, flowers, May Sarton ... (I've enjoyed her writing over the years, she's a favourite of mine.)
I will be back!!
Ah, now I know what a light tray is. Pretty spectacular! We're dealing with a horticulture pro here! Kind of like a greenhouse, yes?
This is exciting...and yes, nothing else like watching those first tiny sprouts come up and begin to uncurl!
The names of these herbs are poetry in themselves. Thank you for this.
Love this! I've not dabbled much with indoor starts, having become spoiled by the neighborhood nursery offerings in 6-packs. Where I live, thyme, rosemary and sage stay green all year round. (There is nothing like walking out your door in the dead of winter and harvesting some herbs for Christmas dinner.) Your indoor greenhouse is wonderful!
cynthia e bagley
thank you for the compliment
greenishlady
I wanted a greenhouse and i think this will work...
kerrdelune
we have about 6 weeks until we can plant outside - i will have to transplant the tiny seedlings at least once before they go out.
chiefbiscuit
glad you came by - look forward to hearing from you agin
fran
this is really a lot like a greenhouse... it is available in a lot of different sizes but we have a lot of acreage around us and I hope to start a lot of native plants.
prin
yes - i actually find myself checking to see if there are new sprouts nearly every time i go past.
mary
it seems like flowers and herbs inspire poetry
nan
it is really nice to have things green all year round - i used to have garden all year when i lived in California but now i think i would miss the seasons.
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